Meet the Hua Family!

What grade is your child in and who are his teachers at Teasley?

Our son Max is in Mrs. Thompson’s second grade class. We love her! Max was with Mrs. Thompson in 1^st grade as well and Mrs. Davis and Mrs. McCluskey in Kindergarten. We have been very lucky to have teachers who are so invested in Max.

What country and what region are you from? Is it hard to balance between the influences of your primary culture as a family when you are immersed in another?

My husband is from Nanjing, China and I am from Xunyi.

We challenge ourselves to find new ways to preserve and honor the traditions of our heritage and experience the authenticities of his own experiences to form his ideas about our culture. Max enjoys pizza and hamburgers and many traditional Western influences, but our traditional rice noodles and dumplings are still what he requests for his birthday! Family is a priority in Chinese culture and we certainly are in a time where we need to lean on one another.

Also, not as many people gather for events like the Dragon Festival or the Chinatown of 50 years ago.  There are misconceptions that is what China looks like today. Today there is a strong western influence on the culture, especially with young people! You will still see Traditional Chinese clothing at the theater and some areas, but young people love modern day fashion and technology.

What advice do you have for new families starting at Teasley?

 I recommend for all families to find ways to get involved at school.  We love that Diversity is a priority for Teasley. We will always be challenged as a community to find new ways to honor diversity with action.   

If you could share one lesson or special idea you learned from Teasley what would it be? 

In kindergarten, Mrs. Davis encouraged families to share traditions they had. My husband visited the class and brought dumplings and materials to share our traditions celebrating the Chinese New Year. It was wonderful to see all of the children so excited and curious! As a parent, seeing Max’s face when he told us about how excited his friends were to learn about the holiday reinforced how important it was for us to look for ways to foster his enthusiasm for our culture with those around him.

I think what we learned at Teasley is:

1. Build a village of people who value the thoughts and beliefs of others.
2. Foster a passion and enthusiasm for your family traditions and cultures. This will build your child’s confidence in who they are. Find classes language classes, dance classes anything to tie to your culture.
3. Also, encourage your child to make friends with others with different backgrounds and beliefs. It is a balance of both!
4. Challenge yourself to get involved and use your voice. Diversity and Isolation can go hand in hand. Don’t wait for the village to hand you the opportunities. Create opportunities as well, so your family can grow and so you can help the next family to come.